You may consider the first robin or daffodil or crack of a baseball bat to be the herald of spring. But in Murray, everyone knows that the most important sign that winter is over is the annual reopening of the Dairy Queen on Main Street.

In business since 1952, this DQ offers a full line of the franchise’s famous ice cream creations, including Blizzards and other new-fangled treats. But on the “hot eats” side of things, it has bucked the tide: no burgers, no fries—just the original menu item of chili dogs, which you can get regular or foot-long, with or without extra cheese. Owners Hal and Leslie Kemp, who took over from the original franchisees in 1993, have also stuck to the restaurant’s decades-long tradition of closing down from November through February. Each March 1, it seems that most everyone in Murray gets in line to secure that first slushie, dipped cone, or chili dog of the year.

The Murray DQ also has a tradition of long-standing employees. On our visit, we met one who had worked at the store for 36 years and had no plans to retire anytime soon.

As time marches on, some change is inevitable, though: In 2008, the bosses at Dairy Queen corporate headquarters let the Kemps know that they were really going to have to insist that the Murray outlet use a cash register.

Powell County and the Red River Gorge region are renowned for natural beauty, including a wealth of stone arches, and rock-climbing and other outdoor recreational opportunities. But those interested in human as well as natural history will want to add another area attraction to their itineraries: the Red River Historical Museum, housed in an impressive 1890s brick building on Main Street in Clay City that was once the Clay City National Bank.

The same abundance of woods and water that makes the area so appealing to adventurers has also been the basis of a succession of industries, from milling to iron smelting to logging. The museum tells stories from these occupations, as well as the railroads that transported the products, with a wide range of artifacts, including an impressive collection of old mill engines. Next door is a reconstructed log schoolhouse where visitors can get a taste of frontier education.

With more than 10,000 acres of gardens and woodlands, Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest is naturally a pretty green place. But it’s also “green” in another sense: The recently refurbished visitors’ center received Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design platinum certification from the U.S. Green Building Council—the highest-level award given by the council for environmentally sustainable building practices.

Kentucky Life has visited Bernheim before, for a short overview tour in Program 103 and for a look at the arboretum’s artists-in-residence project in Program 818. This time out, the focus is on nature. Marc Evans, a senior ecologist with the Kentucky State Nature Preserves Commission, points out some of the special plants and habitats sheltered there, and Education Director Claude Stephens talks about programs designed to get people more in touch with the natural world.

Bernheim’s name reflects its dual focus on human- and nature-engineered landscapes. The arboretum, laid out on former farmland by the architectural firm founded by Frederick Law Olmsted, offers a variety of gardens and world-class plant collections for strolling and study. The surrounding research forest lets hikers explore miles of woodland trails and is home to a diverse array of wildlife, including more than 250 species of birds. The educational attractions also include a “treewalk” high in the treetops where visitors can literally get a new view of the woods. All of it was the gift of Isaac Bernheim, a German Jewish immigrant who made good in Kentucky and gave much of his fortune back to his adopted homeland in the form of public works.

Dave Shuffett hosts this edition from Big Bone Lick State Park, just off Interstate 75 in Boone County. In the 18th and 19th centuries, paleontologists visited the site to excavate numerous bones of extinct Ice-Age animals, which had been attracted there by salt licks. Contemporary visitors can see some of the preserved bones, dioramas of prehistoric life at Big Bone, and a herd of American bison. Kentucky Life’s own first visit was for Program 202.